Connecting Mobile Devices

Many mobile devices can connect to your Windows 7 computer and synchronize data and files between the two. Typically, you connect your device to your computer either using a USB cable or cradle or through a wireless signal (infrared, Bluetooth, or Wi-Fi). Most devices ship with a USB cable or cradle, and most modern computers are equipped with infrared or Bluetooth.

If you are connecting a mobile device using Bluetooth technology, you need to configure that the device is discoverable. You also need to set up the passkey to associate the device with the Bluetooth signal. This ensures that each device is connected to the device to which it is intended to connect.

You can use the Windows Mobility Device Center to disable USB connections and Bluetooth connections. You can access Mobility Device Center by opening the Control Panel, clicking Mobile PC, and selecting Mobility Device Center.

Before you can synchronize information with devices, you must set up sync partnerships. To create a sync partnership with a portable media player, you just need to do the following:

1. Connect your device to a computer running Windows 7 and open Sync Center. Windows 7 includes drivers for many common devices, but you can also obtain drivers from the CD that came with your device or from Windows Update.
2. Set up a sync partnership. Clicking Set up for a media device sync partnership opens Windows Media Player 11.
3. Select some media files or a playlist to synchronize to the device. To select media, simply drag it onto the sync dialog box on the right side of Windows Media Player.
4. Click Start Sync. When your chosen media has transferred to the device, you can disconnect it from your computer and close Windows Media Player.

You can sync your contacts with some mobile devices, enabling you to take your contacts with you wherever you go. To sync contacts with a mobile device, the device must be able to read the contact file that Windows creates for each individual contact. The device must also be compatible with Sync Center, which Windows uses to sync files between a computer and a mobile device.

If you have Exchange Server 2003 or later deployed in your organization, take advantage of its integration with Windows Mobile, which provides direct push email using ActiveSync technology, Global Address List lookup, and numerous security features.